Stop the Paint Madness!!

[NW Modeling List]

What would a Paint Committee need??   A time machine so they can go
back and scrape paint samples off of rolling stock. Color calibrators
for eyes, and a Pantone color chart to go with. And most importantly,
skin thicker than rhino hide. Steve, you are asking "who accredits the
committee, and on what basis?" I suspect there is nobody here foolish
enough to step into those crosshairs.
Seriously, and on a proactive slant, I suggest that the best outcome
would be to identify a RANGE of appropriate shades or mixes for each
of the N&W's nominal "standard colors".  Something to the effect of
"For N&W Passenger Red, Scalecoat #XXX is at the light end, Testors
#YYY is in the middle, MudGoo #ZZZ is at the dark end. Choose as you
wish. Your Individual Mileage May Vary."

Gaining a consensus more precise than that is probably impossible.
This approach also provides some guidance to the individual modeler
who wants to have some variation in their fleet in order to reasonably
represent the inarguable fact of real-world weathering.
Of course, I'm just a VGN guy, what do I know? Black hoppers, yellow
stripes on Train Masters, red cabooses, and the occasional brown
boxcar. Ah, it's modeling bliss. :)

Blessed in my Ignorance
- Marty Swartz

--
Without ambition one starts nothing. Without work one finishes
nothing. — Ralph Waldo Emerson